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Speed of light
3 108 m/s
Radius of earth
6.4 106 m
1 1010 m
By expressing the quantity as a power of ten, its order of magnitude can be found.
A physical quantity is expressed as
n
Physical quantity M 10
Measurement is the process of comparison of the given physical quantity with the known standard
quantity of the same nature.
A unit is the quantity of a constant magnitude which is used to measure the magnitudes of other
quantities of the same nature.
The magnitude of a physical quantity is expressed as
Physical quantity = numerical value unit
A unit can be chosen if it has appropriate properties.
Kinds of Units
Fundamental or basic unit: A fundamental unit is that which is independent of any other unit or which
can neither be changed nor be related to any other fundamental unit.
Derived units: Derived units are those which depend on the fundamental units or which can be
expressed in terms of the fundamental units.
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Definition
length
breadth
force
displacement
Pressure
force
area
Resistance
potential
current
Derived unit
Symbol
metre metre
m2
metre
metre joule
sec ond2
kilogram metre
newton
2
/ metre
pascal
2
2
sec ond
metre
kg m2 s2
=J
kg m1
s2 = N
m-2 = Pa
kg m2 A2
s3 = V
A1 =
kilogram
kilogram metre
/ ampere
volt
ohm
ampere
Systems of Units
There are three systems of units used worldwide. They are CGS, FPS and MKS.
CGS system or French system: The unit of length is centimetre, the unit of mass is gram and the
unit of time is second.
FPS system or British system: The unit of length is foot, the unit of mass is pound and the unit of
time is second.
MKS system or Metric system: The unit of length is metre, the unit of mass is kilogram and the unit
of time is second.
Unit
metre
kilogram
second
Kelvin
candela
ampere
mole
radia
steradian
Symbol
m
kg
s
K
cd
A
mol
rd
st-rd
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Units of Length
1
of a second in air or vacuum.
299,792,458
Sub-units of Metre
Bigger Units
Astronomical unit (AU): One astronomical unit is equal to the mean distance between the Earth
and the Sun.
1 A.U 1.496 1011 m 1.5 1011 m
Light year (ly): A light year is the distance travelled by light in vacuum in one year.
1 ly 9.46 1012 km
Parsec: One parsec is the distance from where the semi-major axis of the orbit of the Earth
subtends an angle of 1 (one second) at the centre of the Sun. One parsec is 3.26 light years.
1 parsec 3.08 1016 m
Smaller Units
Units of Mass
1
th the mass of one carbon-12 atom
12
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Units of Time
A second is defined as
1
th part of a mean solar day.
86,400
1
one mean solar day
86400
In 1964, one second was defined as the time interval of 9,192,631,770 periods of a specified energy
change in the cesium-133 atom.
1s
The symbol of a unit, which is not named after a scientist, is written in lower case.
The symbol of a unit, which is named after a scientist, is written with the first letter of his name in
capital.
The full name of a unit, even when it is named after a scientist, is written with a lower initial letter.
A compound unit formed by multiplication of two or more units is written after putting a dot, cross or
leaving a space in between the two symbols.
A negative power is used for compound units, which are formed by dividing one unit by the other.
A unit in its short form is never written in plural.
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